


In Ten Years

by Tyrelingkitten



Series: DigiOTPweek drabbles [6]
Category: Digimon - All Media Types, Digimon Adventure, Digimon Adventure Zero Two | Digimon Adventure 02, Digimon Adventure tri.
Genre: DigiOTPweek, Ensemble Cast, Gen, One Shot, challenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-20
Updated: 2015-08-20
Packaged: 2018-04-16 05:59:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4613826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tyrelingkitten/pseuds/Tyrelingkitten
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For the DigiOTPWeek.</p><p>Taichi has always thought he’s going to be a pro-footballer.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Ten Years

**Author's Note:**

> **Prompt:** Day 5 - Overcoming challenges and obstacles
> 
>  **A/N:** \- calling soccer - > football cuz Japan usually use football for this sport. And very late for the digiotpweek ;;; whoops.

Taichi has always thought he’s going to be a football player, a professional aiming for the [J-League](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._League_Division_1). 

He has books lined up on his desk, depicting the basics of football, field rules in Japan for the [J-League Cup](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._League_Cup) and [Emperor’s Cup](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor%27s_Cup), international rules in the [Champion’s League](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Champions_League), along with magazine spreads with post-it notes on pages where they interviewed major league clubs like [Verdy Kawasaki](https://www.google.sr/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CBsQFjAAahUKEwjx__u7ybbHAhVHqR4KHWj6A40&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FTokyo_Verdy&ei=BDbVVfHtIcfSeuj0j-gI&usg=AFQjCNHlkPJTmoMUM3rOTAP18tx7frm--A&sig2=eIjQy8zq0rV3IuhGhjamTw), [Kashima Antlers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kashima_Antlers), [Sanfrecce Hiroshima](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanfrecce_Hiroshima), [Yokohama F. Marinos](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yokohama_F._Marinos) and many more–basically prominent football clubs who have made it in the international scenes. He has even put together a scrapbook of his favorite players, [Akita Yutaka](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yutaka_Akita),[Suzuki Takayuki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takayuki_Suzuki), [Nakamura Shunsuke](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shunsuke_Nakamura), [Lionel Messi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lionel_Messi), [Cristiano Ronaldo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cristiano_Ronaldo), [Pelé ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pel%C3%A9)–pictures and shots of the time they were playing in major leagues. 

Although his mother isn’t that convinced about his professional football player ambition, she doesn’t stop him from joining football club at school or tournaments. His father is supportive of his dreams, as long as he’s sure this is what Taichi wants to do. His sister, Hikari, claims to be his number one fan so she looks forward when he finally gets to play in the field in a major league.

 

 

… until he fell during Inter High tournaments in his second High school year and nearly messed up his knee cap that the doctor forbade him to put on strain than his young developing body could handle. So strenuous activities were banned. No more running laps around the school, no more squatting during practice, no more scraping his knees along the grass for a save–basically anything related to a football. 

He wouldn’t be able to do anything the first three weeks anyway, since the doc had put his leg in a cast and recommended slow walks and light leg activities until he’s okayed for physical therapy.

And for the first time, suddenly, there’s nothing to do. Nothing to keep his mind occupied besides feeling bitter about his injury and football. Hikari tried to cheer him up, getting him ice cream and snacks from the local convenience store and asking him to walk her to that one cute shop a few blocks away from home. 

Koushirou stopped by as well, awkwardly teaching him how to write javascript and jargon Taichi didn’t quite comprehend. 

Sora and Yamato often asked him to hang out with them, to watch movies, to check out the amusement park, to visit anime conventions nearby–but after the first two times, Taichi refused to come along. Being a third wheel in the outing is actually a lot more awkward than he had first thought. 

Jou only called him at night, when he’s done with cram classes, to suggest ways to alleviate the pain, the stress on his muscles, his blood pressure and Mimi could only send him heartfelt messages and videos of [cats jumping in boxes](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=cat+jump+in+box) and [dogs demand their beds back from cats](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dog+wants+bed+back). 

Takeru was still too young to be visit him alone, according to his mom, but when he did find his way to Taichi’s apartment, he would bring along Daisuke and Ken and they all ended up playing Mario Kart in the living-room.

At some point, during his days of waiting for his knee to heal up, Taichi slowly realizes–maybe football isn’t for him. He doesn’t want to injure his body that much that after ten years he needs to continually get a leg operation like some of the major leaguers do.

“That’s just your self-esteem talking.” Yamato has said.

“Your body is just in shock for now.” Sora has chimed in.

“Give it some time. If you go back to club activities and still feel that burning desire then football is probably really for you.” Jou advises.

 

 

The seniors graduated. Taichi went back to club, got elected as the new captain and tried to whip the new team back to shape according to his standards. His knee was healed up, but he still felt the phantom twinges of pain when it rained or when the weather dropped in temperature. As the new captain, he realized he had good eyes for spotting players–players who enjoyed football, who craved for victories.

He realized he enjoyed playing still, but the fire that used to blaze up inside his stomach to the point of impending explosion, was no longer that prone to blasting the will to become a football player.

 

He’s a third year now. The homeroom teacher hands everyone a future career survey and asks everyone to think properly about their choice of careers and they will each get an individual evaluation after the first exam.

Taichi’s pen remained hovering above the block space underneath the question _\- what job do you see yourself in ten years?_

_Footballer?_

–no.

–maybe?

Perhaps?

What else is there?

_Business man?_

No.

_Teacher?_

That’s Hikari’s dream.

And he doesn’t have the patience to teach.

What… exactly?

Compared to Jou, Taichi’s resolve to become a football player seems so filmsy at hindsight. Jou has always wanted to become useful to others, the reliable one who will do things no one would look twice at. A medical career is what most parents expect their kids to aim for, because of the reputation and the money, but Taichi can’t see himself as someone who would quickly provide first-aid in time of emergencies as Jou would.

 _Computer engineering? Lawyer?_  Maybe?

 

“You can try taking part-time jobs? Maybe you’ll find something you like?” Dad had suggested.

Which wasn’t a bad idea.

“Who would take in a high school student with no diploma and no work experience?” Taichi muttered wryly.

“Maybe you can try this place?” Hikari gives him a flyer–a poster about an event, a-

“[A PIKACHU AUDITION](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pikachu+outbreak)?” Taichi exclaims when he finally reads the title. “WHY?”

“Some of my friends are going to try out.” Hikari smooths her skirt and checks herself in the mirror to put on hair pins. “They’re looking for a lot of people, you know. They said they were trying to gather 1000 people willing to wear the mascots for one whole day. They only ask you to be no taller than 180 and willing to practice for a few days in the week.”

“That–that doesn’t sound so bad.”

“Yep. They will provide for food and drinks and barbeque when the event is closed. And some money too.” Hikari nods to her reflection and turns around to look at Taichi earnestly. “So will you do it?”

–he does. 

He did. 

He got the part, a big yellow costume and a hearty clap to the back from the man who claims to be the Face of the Pikachu March. He went through practice until he got all the beats memorized and sweated in his costume when the event happened. The crowd cooed at him and his fellow Pikachu mascots, calling him “Cute~~~ How cute~~~!” over and over again, sometimes asking him to pose with them in pictures, poked at his costume, but otherwise let him wiggle and jump around for one day.

 

 

Then Agumon looked at him with wide, sparkling eyes. A little sad. A little confused. All of them together. And Taichi felt like he had betrayed his friend. 

 

The day after Pikachu mascot job, Taichi decided to go on an impromptu journey in the Digital World, only taking along what’s necessary for his survival–food, water, clothes, tent–and says goodbye to Koushirou. Agumon tagged along and they both spent days and maybe weeks in the Digital World–sleeping underneath digital stars, in caves and trying to understand the environment without getting into the scientific aspects of Digital theory. After wandering around with Agumon for what seemed like a month, Taichi came back to the real world–a changed individual, not yet man, signs of beard growing along his chin and stinking like swamp.

 

Koushirou, Hikari, Takeru Sora and Yamato welcome him back in his room.

“Have you found your answer?” Sora asked as she grabbed him a dry towel.

“Did you even take a proper bath?” Yamato teased, but took Taichi’s bags from his hand.

“Welcome back, brother!” Hikari had cheered.

“How was your journey?” Koushirou and Takeru asked in tandem. “Did you find any trouble happening?”

Taichi inhaled loudly and breathing in the crisp stale air of air conditioning and the familiarity of friends and family nearby, and smiled. “Yes.”

He no longer feels uncertain about his own future.

 

 

“That look in your eyes,” Jou said when they met up after Taichi’s finals for KFC, “Looks good on you.”

“Really?” Taichi murmured over his straw and grinned, because he knew and he understood. His phone vibrated in his pocket and he unlocks the screen to see Mimi had sent him a message.

 

 

 _/Congratulations, Taichi!/_  was Mimi message. _/I’m glad you’ve found something you’d like to do. I’m cheering you on from New York. XOXO/_

 

 

*******

**end**

*******

**Author's Note:**

> *And that’s how he decides to be a diplomat.
> 
> I don’t know much of soccer/football except what I’ve gleaned from watching anime Captain Tsubasa and Giant Killing. Other info are just from wikipedia. ;;; 
> 
>  **[Pikachu Outbreak](http://tinycartridge.com/post/126378980782/pikachu-outbreak-a-mob-of-pikachus-descended) -** Happened recently in Yokohama and last year too. [See](http://lavieenrous.tumblr.com/post/127110777234/do-you-ever-just) [some](http://nanamimama.tumblr.com/post/127122530242/v%C3%ADa-httpswwwyoutubecomwatchv-qupa5yjonim) [videos](http://mashable.tumblr.com/post/127114567250/get-it-pikakchus). (Sorry, not trying to pit both shows at each other)


End file.
